Pump for oil-wells.



D. DANIELS.

PUMP PoR ou. WELLS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. Z2, 1908. 998,076. Patented July 18, 1911.

UNTTED sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

DANIEL DANIELS, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

PUMP FOR OIL-WELLS.

b all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANIEL DANIELS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a Pump for Oil-llf'lells, of which the following is a specification.

` This invention relatesto pumps for oil wells and more particularly to the formation of the barrel and the method of packing and unpacking the same. I

One object of the invention is to providey a construction which can be easily and quickly separated at any time and the desired changes or repairs made and the parts reassembled and placed in operative condition with but little trouble and expense and in the field as well as in the shop, thereby reducing the cost and delay of making such repairs to a minimum.

Another object of the invention is to form the liners of the barrel in sections, whereby they may be bored perfectly true and secured together in perfect alinement and then holding them against possible longitudinal movement.

Another object of the invention is to automatically pack the barrel by closing the' space between the liners and the outside shell or casing with ,sand or other sedimentl while the pump is beingoperated or before it is placed in position. y

Another object of the invention is to provide means for quickly removing the packing when it is desired to repair the barrel, as by replacing the worn or damaged liners. lVith these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the improved construction and novel arrangement of the parts of a pump, and also the means of packing and unpacking the same, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention and form a part-of this specification. l

Figure l is a longitudinal, sectional view of one form of pump barrel with the plunger and standing valve in position therein. Fig. 2 is a transverse, sectional view on the line osg-x2 looking down. Fig. 3 is a similar View on the line @a3-ac3. spective view of two sections of the liner separated with the connecting ring therebetween. Fig. 5 is an elevation of a barrel suspended and being emptied or unpacked.

Referring more4 particularly to the draw- Speccaton of Letters Patent.

Application led August 22, 1908.

Fig. 4 is a per- Patented July 18, 1911.

Serial No. 451,102.

ings, l indicates the outside shell or casing.

of my improved pump, which may be of any desired size and construction,. being provided at its ends with screw threaded portions 2 for the reception of the couplers or connections 3 and f1.

Each coupling is provided at the bottom of the screw threads 2 with a shoulder 5 which is counter-bored, as at 6, for the reception of the ends 7 of the liners 8. The liners are of a less exterior diameter than the interior diameter of the shell or casing 1, whereby a space 9 is left between them which is utilized for packing the barrel to secure the required strength to prevent the pressure from the oil and pumping mechanism from bursting the liners or springing them out of alinement.

The liners are preferably made interchangeable with the shoulders 7 at each end of exactly the same size andlength, whereby the sections may be inverted or turned end for end as well as being made interchangeable. The adjacent endsof the intermediate sections are preferably secured ring 10 that fits snugly upon the reduced portions 7 and between the shoulders 11 formed by `turning down the ends of the liner to form said reduced portions the reduced portions 7 of the liners are smooth on their exterior surface so that the liners can be shoved onto one another by direct longiand the couplings so as to permit of the.

linersv being forced together at each of the joints throughout the entire length of the barrel when the couplings at the ends are' screwed upon the ends of the casing 1, the casing being enough shorter than the length of the barrel to permit of the liners being forced into rigid engagement with each other in this manner, while there is yet space in perfect alinement by means of a band or between the ends of the casing and the shoulders 5.

The ordinary stand Valve 12 is seated in the lower coupling in the ordinary manner, and the upper coupling is provided with an internal collar or projection-13 extending from the bottom of its counter-bore l6 upward a desired distance, at which point a shoulder is formed, preferably inclined or flaring outward, as shown at lil. Beyond the flaring or shouldered portion let the interior of the upper coupling is screw threaded in the ordinary manner for the reception of the usual tubing 15.

A hollow plunger 16 is reciprocally mounted within the liners and is preferably provided with the ordinary Garbutt attachments 1'? and 18 for removing the stand pipe when the plunger is withdrawn. rll`he internal diameter or bore of the collar 13 is a small fraction of an inch larger than the bore of the liners so as to permit of the insertion of the plunger, but which will act as a guide for the same, and especially after the liners have become a trifle worn. The bore of the upper end of the top liner is preferably rounded or beveled, as shown at 19, to permit of the easy insertion of the plunger without the liability of its catching upon the shoulder formed by the slight enlargement of the internal diameter of the collar 18 above referred to.

'lthe collar 13 is provided with channels or openings 20, which extend through the same substantially parallel with the aXis of the barrel and open communication between the interior of the pump barrel or the tubing l5 and the space 9 between the casing and the liners and thereby permit oil and sand to enter said space whenever the pump is lowered into the well for operation. lVhen the pump is lowered into the well this space will quickly be filled with oil and a greater or less amount of sand which will be carried therein with the oil, which will pack the pump sufficiently to withstand temporary or initial operation. After the pump has been used a short time the sand within the oil gradually works down into the space through the openings or channels and gradually packs within said space and fills it completely driving out the oil by its difference in weight, after which the pump will sustain any pressure that may be placed upon it by the ordinary pumping mechanism Without damaging any of the liners or throwing them out of position.

By constructing a pump in this manner the sections of the liners can be of such length, preferably twelve inches, that they essere barrel, and especially after it has become more or less worn, and they also add to the strength of the liners at their ends, which would otherwise be their weakest points and most liable to break upon pressure from the oil when the plunger is being forced downward and especially with thick, heavy oils,

rlhis construction of the pump barrel and the method of automatically packing the same with the sand and oil while in operation avoids the possibility of any contraction or decrease of internal diameter of the liners or any portion thereof by the cooling of heated metals when used for packing, and which contraction must always be provided for by slightly decreasing the diameter of the plunger' so as to permit of its free reciprocation even though such contract-ion should only occur or take place at one or two points throughout the entire length of the barrel. ltn other words, it permits of the closest possible fit or joint between the plunger and the interior of the liners, which thereby adds to the length of the life or working capacity of the pump by the amount of time which would be required to wear the parts suflicient to equal the space that must be left between the plunger and the interior of the liners where the possibility of contraction or of imperfect alinement occurs within the barrel. It also prevents the contraction at the ends of the liners where the greatest amount of such contraction would be liable to occur owing to the fact that the end of the liners is normally weaker than any other portion throughout its length, and which contraction is liable to be increased by the compression placed upon the casing by the coupling when screwed thereon and which pressure is transmitted through the metallic packing to the end of thegliners. As the process of pumping proceeds the sand passes through the openings 20 and gradually settles down in the space between the liners and the casing and becomes almost as solid and unyielding as metal itself, and especially when confined at the ends, except through the. small inlet openings at the top and which eventually also become filled and packed in the same manner as the rest of thespace, including the space between the ends of the casing and the shoulders at the bottom of the outside screw threaded portions.

After a pump has been used to such an extent that the space between the plunger and the liners has become so great as to permit the passage of oil therethrough and thereby effectively detract from or lessen the quantity of oil being pumped, it is necessary that the pump be withdrawn and replaced 'by a new one or the old one repaired by removing the liners and the plunger and substituting new ones therefor. lVhere the packing is formed from metal or other solid material it is necessary that the pump barrel be subjected to a degree of heat sufficient to melt the packing metal and cause it to run out from between the casing and the liners, after which the necessary repairs may be made and the space again filled with the melted metal, which, upon cooling, is liable to cause contraction and unevenness in the liners in the same manner as heretofore described for the original construction of the pump barrel.

lVhere the sand and other sedimentis used for packing, the cost of the metal for packing and the expense of melting and putting it in place is avoided, and when it is desired to unpack the pump for the purpose of repair the only operation that is necessary is to remove one or both of the couplingsat the ends of the easing and then slightly warm or heat the pump barrel sufficiently to render the oil that is commingled with the sand or other packing substance so liquid as to permit of the grains of sand readily separating or falling out from between the casing and the liners by suspending the barrel from one end, as shown in Fig. 5, and slightly tapping the casing, if necessary, to jar the sand loose. The degree of heat necessary to effect the removal of the packing in this manner will be indicated by the melting of the oil upon the exterior of the casing and which is never great enough to possibly overheat the casing and thereby spring it or damage it or any other portion of the barrel in any manner.

The oil that is introduced with the sand coats or covers each grain thereof with a thick, adhesive substance, which will prevent the grains of sand from coming in actual Contact when the barrel is packed, but which will hold them against movement and thereby form a substantially solid or immovable packing. The application of the heat above referred to melts this coating andl thereby causes it to unloosen the sand which will be readily removed when the barrel is suspended. In addition to this the heat will have a tendency to expand any gas that may be confined within the packing and thereby cause it to assist in expelling or pushing the sand out when the barrel is heilig unpacked. After the packing has been removed in this manner, which will also permit of the sections of the liner dropping out at the same time, new liners can be placed within the casing in the same manner as originally done and secured therein by replacing the coupling or couplings, as the case may be, after which a new plunger may be inserted within lthe liners and the pump is thereby completed and rendered as efficient as when originally constructed.

'Owing to the ease and facility with which the old packing and the worn out liners and plunger can be removed, a great saving in time is effected` in repairing pumps, and as no packing is required until the barrel has been inserted into the oil and sand which thereby packs it automatically and without cost, a very great saving can be eected-by the use of my invention bothv in originally constructing the same and in any repairs that may be necessary. The simplicity of the operation will also enable the ordinary mechanic or well operator to repair the pump in the field by simply dis-- assembling it and inserting the new liners and plunger, as above described, without the necessity of sending it to the shop, thereby effecting a saving of both time and money. l

Instead of using oil and sand, as above described, for packing the pump, it is evident that the packing could be effected by using dry sand or other granulated material or substance which could be introduced into the space between the casing and the liners either in its dry state or condition or by the use of water, which would permit of the sand readily entering said space and sinking to the bottom and thereby expelling the air or water, as the case may be, and thus pack the barrel in a very cheap and efficient manner, and, therefore, I wish it to be distinctly understood that I do not limit my invention to the use of oil and sand or coated sand, but include all granulated substances, in whatever condition, except the melted or homogeneous condition. In removing the granulated material after having been introduced in this manner the barrel can be suspended or held in the same manner. as heretofore described, and the material can be permitted or caused to fall out of said space by gravity or by striking the barrel so as to jar or unloosen said material.

Having described claim:-

1l In a pump for oil wells, a casing having its ends externally screw-threaded, a coupling screwed upon each end of said casing, and a lining within the easing consisting of a plurality of liner sections, each` section having at each end a portion of reduced exterior diameter with a smooth exterior surface, and such portion being pro-- vided with a shoulder, and a band fitting upon the reduced portions of adjacent ends of the sections at each joint between the respective sections, thereby holding the sections in alinement, the sections being supported in position within the casing by their engagement with the counterbored portion and shoulders of the couplings.

my invention, I

2. In a pump for oil wells, a easinghav- "'f being eounterloored upon one side of said projection, a sectional liner Within the oasing, the, external diameter of which 1s a tri'fie less than the external diameter ot" said projection, the ends of said sections each having a portion of reduced external diameter, said portion having a smooth surface and provided with a shoulder, the upper end of the upper section fitting with- 10 in said Counter-bore and having its bore slightly enlarged at the end, and rings tting upon the reduced portions of the adjacent ends oi the other sections.

ln testimony whereof, lt have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this l5 14th day of August 1908.

DANEL DANELS. In presence of- `W. S. BOYD, FRANK L. A. GRM-min 

